Capricorn Christmas

Buttercup

The dance floor was packed and surprisingly enough the DJ was open to requests. Maybe he was high, maybe it was because my friend Amy was young and beautiful and full of charm. "An absolute delight," is how my mom described her and it just happened to be her birthday. Hit after hit kept everyone swaying, smiling, singing when all of a sudden I heard that first note. Da da da. I'd waited almost an hour and had almost given up hope, but here it was the unmistakable beginning of "Build me up Buttercup".

"An oldie, but a goodie!" Kelsey yelled bobbing through the crowd. I could tell Amy was loving it, she began to sing as she pointed in my direction, "Nice." She would have known right away that this could only have been requested by me. Vibes were right, so when Les came barreling through the crowd toward me I only thought he was coming to join in.

He cupped my by the elbow and started walking me off the dance floor. "Hey it's Build Me Up Buttercup. We should be dancing." Les had a manic look in his eyes, "It's all about me right now," he said as we made a beeline to a side exit. We burst through the doors into the cold snowy night. I didn't have to wait long for an explanation from Les. He braced himself against the tail of the steps and threw up into the freshly fallen snow. "Oof, that feels better," he said gulping in fresh winter air.

We could hear the beat pulsing inside, the music muffled but distinctly buttercuppy. "You all right?" I asked. Les took one big breath out to get all the sick air out, "Yep." He finally let go of the rail and turned back to wear I was waiting by the door. "You were supposed to hold the door, so we could get back in." Sheepishly I looked the the closed door, it was definitely locked, it didn't even have a doorknob on this side of it.

Luckily it was just snowy and not overly cold. Big fat fluffy flakes were falling from the sky, it would have been kind of beautiful if this alley wasn't so dark and terrifying. Scuttling down the stairs minding the puddle of puke at the bottom we manoeuvred back to the front of the bar to get back in. "Well fuck," Les grumbled.

It was then that I really started to feel the temperature. I was not dressed for being outside in winter weather without a coat, and not for standing in a line for who knows how long. "I'm just gonna zip to the front and explain what happened." Les hung back a step or two knowing that as a girl I might have more luck with the bouncers than him.

"Hey," I squeezed by the line of people huddled together for warmth, "um so my friend barfed so we went out a back door and then we got locked out and now well we're out here." I tried to look as pathetic as possible, which probably wasn't hard because I was now shivering from the cold. The bouncer barely moved his head, he was somehow looking straight forward and at me at the same time, "Your friend's sick? You can't go back in." Damn it. "Well can I just run in and grab our coats?" "There's a line," he used his chin to point at the sting of people behind me. "I'll be in and out. I'm not going to ditch my friend." I gestured at Les who was now at the hotdog stand.

It only took a few minutes to weave through the crowd and collect the coats.  Amy was easy to spot up in the DJ booth like a beacon in the pulsing lights.  Les was waiting outside so I made the decision to give the wave while holding the coats up to chest height to indicate to her that I was on my way out.  I was back outside in just a few minutes and the the bouncer nodded at me impressed that I had actually reappeared and hadn't disappeared back into the dark corners of the bar.  "Hey, what's up," I heard Amy calling to me hanging out the front door. "Les barfed." "Ohhh,"she said.  No other explanation needed.

Reluctantly she asked, "Do you need me?" This was really sweet since it was Amy's birthday and I knew she was having a great time. I turned to locate Les to assess the situation and he was standing under a streetlight eating a hotdog.  "I got it," I nodded, "I'll see you at home."  Amy breathed a sigh of relief, "Ok gre..." and I can only assume the last word she said was great as her head disappeared behind the closing door. 

"You feeling better?" I asked Les as I came up behind him.  He was chewing the last piece of his hotdog, but nodded and wiped his hands together to signal he was done.  I looked up and down second avenue for a cab, but there wasn't anything is sight, but what I did see was the green and red glow of a 7/11 store directly across the street and I was a little hungry for some chicken on a stick.

Les apologized for getting us booted out of the bar for barfing, but I wasn't overly concerned. It was late, we'd had a great time and now I was on my way to getting myself convenience store chicken in kabob form.  As far as I was concerned this was a pretty great... And that's when I slipped.  Midway across the road in my chicken anticipation I wiped out.  I don't know it I heard the sound first or saw the white flashes of pain first, but before I knew what had happened I was on the lying on the ground in excruciating pain.  Les kneeled down beside me putting a hand on my shoulder. 

We were blocking traffic, a car creeped within a few feet of where I was lying in the street before driving around us.  They probably thought I was three sheets to the wind.  I hadn't even drank very much, but now it was my turn to barf.  Les turned his head, "Are you ok?" he asked his voice sounded so distant, so strained. "No." My eyes are full of tears and I was too close to my own barf down here.  "Me neither," Les barely squeaked out, and lying on the slushy cold asphalt I saw Les barf for the second time that night.